


A Pavus No Longer

by thekingofcarrotflowers



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Assassination Attempt(s), Blood and Violence, Canon-Typical Violence, Established Relationship, Halward Pavus' A+ Parenting, Hurt/Comfort, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-06
Updated: 2015-09-06
Packaged: 2018-04-19 08:12:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4739159
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thekingofcarrotflowers/pseuds/thekingofcarrotflowers
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A promising morning goes all wrong after an assassination attempt on Dorian's life. Also, I am bad a descriptions AND titles.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Pavus No Longer

**Author's Note:**

  * For [JustJasper](https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustJasper/gifts).



> Finally filling this: Adoribull Sunday Prompt -Sad Adoribull – Assassination attempt – After the rumors reach Dorian’s parents about his very serious relationship with a Qunari they decide “A dead son is better than a shamed one”. Justjaspers tragedy prompt.
> 
> Since it got longer, I thought I'd post it here. Also, I apparently can't spell lately??

Bull always like the days when Dorian watched them train in the mornings. Dorian making the effort to be there stirred something in him, in his chest and in his gut, and his hands itched to touch Dorian again. It was rare, the man usually sleeping until lunch. Last night, Dorian had trouble sleeping, instead tossing and turning, keeping them both awake. He rose when the Bull did, sitting at his vanity in the quarters they now shared when Bull gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before heading out the door. Halfway through their training, Dorian had appeared, wearing glittering silver and gold robes. His golden jewelry had been put in place, black and gold rings on every finger, a few in each ear, the hoop through his nose, and Bull could imagine the one in Dorian’s cock, the sharp taste of metal when he swallowed him down. Today, it was gold kohl around his eyes, dramatic and thick, making his eyes almost glow. Bull had never decided on a color for Dorian’s eyes, the color sometimes looking like the sky before the first strike of lightning, others looking like the sun reflecting gold against the surface of a lake.

  
Dorian was _smiling_ at him, lips full and delicious. It wasn’t one of his smug smirks or haughty grins, but something warm and fond and inviting. His being there wasn’t much of a distraction, but instead sent fire through Bulls veins, driving him to work harder as his heartbeat thumped behind his ears. Krem blocked away a strong blow with a shield angled just right, but Bull was able to duck and turn away from the counter blow of Krem’s practice sword. He swiped his own weapon across the ground, catching Krem’s feet and sending him flat on his ass.

  
“Don’t need to show off just because you have an audience,” Krem grumbled, low enough that Dorian couldn’t hear above the clacking of swords and the groan of metal and leather. Bull laughed heartily, offering Krem a hand up. He easily yanked him up, his lieutenant rubbing at his sore bottom with one hand before ducking down to pick his sword back up.

  
“You don’t need to be such a _sore_ loser,” Bull winked at him, and Krem rolled his eyes.

  
“We’re almost done here, then you two can go shag or whatever it is he’s waiting for,” Krem huffed.

  
Krem and Bull went a few more rounds, Skinner joining them for the last one. Krem took a more forward approach, with Skinner maneuvering around Bull’s sword and managing to slip past his blows. He wasn’t putting his full force into them, instead waiting for the right moment to get them both in one quick go of it. However, as he went to block a blow Krem dealt, Skinner managed to catch her foot on Bull’s. It could be risky, if Bull came down on her much more delicate frame, but everything about what they did was dangerous and he insisted they take any advantage they could on the field. Bull stumbled, trying to catch himself, but Krem gave a strong push against Bull’s raised sword and he was lurching backwards. It was a clatter of weapons and armor as he fell onto his back, but once he recovered from the initial surprise, he beamed up proudly at his men.

  
Dorian laughed then, loud and clear, and clapped for them. Krem and Skinner stood, huffing and catching their breaths, over Bull.

  
“Very good,” Dorian said playfully as he crossed towards them, “I’m not sure I’ve seen someone get the best of Bull on the training field before.”

  
Krem snorted at Dorian as he offered a hand, setting his heels in the dirt and yanking Bull up. His knee was a little sore from the fall, but Skinner had been careful about how she tripped him, not wanting to damage his bad knee during a training accident of all things.

  
“Maybe you two should go for a round sometime,” Skinner suggested, smirking mischievous, “That’d be something to see.”

  
Dorian hummed thoughtfully for a minute, rocking on his feet, “Yes, it rather would. What do you think, Bull?”

  
“Hey, I’m up for anything,” Bull said, a smart grin on his face as he waggled his eyebrows slightly.

  
Dorian chucked warmly then, and the feeling that flared in Bull’s chest was still somewhat unfamiliar, but something he was becoming more accustom to the more Dorian was around. The man had went from prickly and standoffish when they first met, never relaxing, poking and prodding at everyone around him in an effort to keep himself safe and hidden. Something as simple as a wink or sultry grin would have him groaning with disgust and stomping away. Now, he was much lighter, much warmer, and it made Bull’s heart do flips with every easy laugh and bright smile and show of kindness that Dorian was now letting himself have.

  
“We should set a date, then. Make a show of it,” Dorian teased, tilting his head slightly.

  
“Sure, sounds good, Kadan,” Bull answered, taking a step closer to Dorian. Krem and Skinner began to move away, clapping each other on the shoulder as they headed towards the barracks to change and clean up.

  
“You need a bath,” Dorian said, crinkling his nose, but he placed a palm against Bull’s chest anyways.

  
“Thought you liked it when I got down and dirty.”

  
Dorian scoffed, but smiled, “While you glistening with sweat _is_ entirely appealing, it’s been a week since you last bathed and I’m sure after the various activities you have partook in, you’re ready for a scrub behind the ears.”

  
“Are you going to do it for me?” Bull grinned, brushing his fingers over Dorian’s cheek.

  
“If you haven’t noticed — and I’m sure you have — I’m packaged up so nicely for you, and it would be a shame to just remove all of it for a bath.”

  
“It could be more than just a bath. Besides, if we’re just going to get all mussed up, why bathe?”

  
“I have some plans,” Dorian admitted, eyes gone hot and lidded, his hand trailing across the strap of the Bull’s harness, “As I mentioned before, I am packaged up _rather nicely_.”

  
That tone went directly to Bull’s groin as realization struck. His eyes flickered to Dorian’s waist, and he could see the more pronounced curve there now. He’d somehow overlooked it, attributed it to how well the robes fit him, how snugly they laid against his body. He licked his lips, suspecting Dorian had that tight black corset they’d commissioned from Vivienne’s tailor on beneath the robes. He ran his hand up Dorian’s side, the man shivering slightly under his touch.

  
“Oh,” was all that Bull could think to say, and that made Dorian laugh again.

  
“So, how about you give us a kiss now, go get yourself prettied up, and I’ll meet you up in our room?” Dorian asked, standing on tiptoes to almost reach Bull’s lips.

  
Bull grinned, humming in agreement as he crashed their lips together briefly. It’d taken a lot before Dorian had even considered kissing him in public, and had only happened after one time Bull returned battered and bruised and bloodied from a trip, word coming ahead that they’d been attacked on the pass by some bandits. Dorian had been waiting for him then, had kissed him despite the blood and grime and all the people around, and that had been that. It still set Dorian on edge if the kisses lasted too long, Dorian leaning away and checking for any wandering eyes or whispered tones. There’d been a few, mostly people surprised by the pair of them, and Dorian was learning not to let it gnaw at him like it previously had. Still, Bull broke the kiss before he was entirely ready, and brushed his hand across Dorian’s neck.

  
“See you soon, then,” Bull murmured in the space between them.

  
“I’m be waiting,” Dorian smiled back, before turning to begin to saunter across the courtyard.

  
Bull hurried towards the barracks, past Rocky and Dalish who were cleaning up after the Chargers today. Dalish hooted at him, having overheard the exchange, and Bull flashed her a quick grin. Then, as he reached the door, everything fell apart.

  
Even from this distance, Bull could make out the sound of impact, something tearing, a _thunk_ , a crack of bones. The sound Dorian made was as barely-there as the thud of impact, a sharp hitch of breath indicating surprise and, then, pain. Bull was turning then, running forward. Dalish was yelling, reaching out for her bow, but everything seemed to be moving so, so painfully slow. Bull wasn’t going fast enough, wasn’t close enough to keep Dorian safe as the second arrow tore through him, this one without the crack of hitting bone. It was then that Dorian yelled out, something broken and full of pain, bringing up blood into his throat and mouth. He was stumbling forward, trying to catch himself and stay upright, but his knees smashed into the ground a moment later as he clutched at his chest.

  
“Dorian!” Bull cried out, still far enough away that another arrow could make a final, fatal blow. Dorian’s eyes, wet and hurt, rose and looked over to him, Bull’s name a whine on his lips, and Bull felt as if the world was falling apart around him.

  
Instead, the next arrow hits the dirt just right of Dorian’s hand, which is now fisted into the grass. Dalish had shot a blow up into the tower, where the arrows are coming from, and threw the third shot off. It gave Bull the time to get to Dorian. There was blood already dripping from his mouth as he curved forward, a trembling arm keeping him upright for now. Bull moved behind him, shielding from any more attacks. From here, he can see that the arrows are black and sleek, tipped with green and gold feathers. Carefully, Bull lifted Dorian up into his arms, Dorian yelling out as pain shot through him, more blood bubbling up behind his teeth.

  
“I’ve got you, Dorian,” Bull said firmly, reassuringly, even as Dorian’s eyes rolled back and blood flowed steadily from the corner of his mouth.

  
The courtyard was all chaos, people running and ducking for cover, Dalish sending blasts up into the once-abandoned tower. The arrows aren’t hitting their mark anymore, digging into the earth at Dalish’s feet or skimming past Bull’s bicep. Dorian was growing paler with every second, and Bull broke into a run across the courtyard. The occasional arrow whizzed his way, one burrowing into his arm, but it was unimportant. He needed to get Dorian to safety, to the infirmary. He could feel his breath stuttering, the gurgle of blood in his throat. There was blood oozing from around the arrows, but not much, and Bull knew the worse damage was _inside_.

  
“Hey!” Bull was shouting even before he made it through the door to the infirmary, needing someone to be ready to help Dorian, knowing there wasn’t any time to spare. The arrows were dangerously close to his heart, one through his lung if the wet way he was straining for breath was an indicator, and the Bull was scared, “Hey, we need help!”

  
A healer was near the door as it was, having been taking in the chaos outside. The arrows had stopped flying after part of the tower came crashing down because of Dalish’s attacks, but Bull had been too absorbed in keeping Dorian safe to notice. Once Bull ducked inside, they were hovering over Dorian, hands glowing palely as they looked him over.

  
“Leave him here, we’ll get to work, but we need Madame de Fer,” the healer said, voice shaky. They gestured at a cot, and carefully, so carefully, Bull lowered Dorian into it.

  
Quickly, he kissed Dorian’s forehead, murmuring, ‘Stay with me’ before heading back outside. He moved full-kilter, and was thankful that the courtyard was still mostly clear. He spotted Cullen, who was shouting orders at guards, and wondered vaguely where his Chargers were and if they were safe, since the training field was empty. It was around lunch time, and Bull hoped his guess that Viv and Josie were at lunch together was right. He caught people’s concerned looks as he sprinted past, boots sliding on the stone as he turned into Josephine’s office.

  
“What on earth is going on out there?” Vivienne asked as the door smashed against the wall, Bull falling inside the room.

  
“Please,” Bull whined, finding it difficult to make the words, “Ma’am, please, Dorian —”

  
Vivienne’s eyes flickered over the blood lightly splattered across his chest, the blood on his hands, and she hurriedly stood. She grabbed her staff, and Josephine stood as well, hands over her mouth.

  
“A rain-check, my dear,” she said to Josephine as she hurried from the room. Bull jogged behind her, high heels clicking against the stone as she dashed through the hall, “What are his injuries?”

  
“Arrows, two arrows in the chest,” Bull wheezed, feeling lightheaded now. He’d only noticed the blood on his hands after Viv’s gaze focused on it for a minute, and he hurriedly tried to wipe it off on his pants. Concern wrinkling her brow only slightly, Vivienne gave him a look over her shoulder. They reached the infirmary quickly, but Vivienne hesitated for a moment at the door.

  
“Wait outside, my dear,” Vivienne suggested, hand firm on Bull’s chest.

  
“But, what if —” Bull murmured, unable to say all the things that could go wrong.

  
“Then I’ll call for you,” she reassured, pressing a little harder on his chest, “Wait out here.”

  
Bull nodded slightly, and Vivienne turned into the chaos inside. He got a brief peak of healers moving inside, blood on their hands and clothes, and he swallowed hard.

  
“Chief,” Krem said, suddenly next to him as he stared dejectedly at the closed door. He could hear Vivienne giving orders, voice sharp and commanding, and Bull was thankful for her.

  
“I don’t know if he’s going to be okay,” Bull breathed out.

  
“Viv’s in there, yeah?” Krem asked, reaching up to place his hand on Bull’s arm. He nodded curtly, “He’s in the best hands, then.”

  
“You’re right.”

  
“We got the guy. Cullen was taking him down to the dungeon,” Krem gave his arm a squeeze, hoping it was some sort of reassurance.

  
“He was a ‘Vint,” Bull said knowingly, recognizing something about the arrows.  
Krem paused, thinking over his answer but saying simply, “Yeah.”

  
“What else did you find out?” Bull asked, turning towards Krem. He could tell by his tone there was something more, something he wasn’t going to like.

  
“There was a letter. Leliana has it now.”

  
“Yeah? From Halward Pavus,” Bull growled out, thinking of the color of the arrows, of the Pavus’ house colors.

  
“Yeah. Come on, Bull, let’s take a walk, get you cleaned up,” Krem ran his hand down Bull’s arm, feeling the muscles tensing angrily beneath his touch.

  
“Fuck,” Bull grit out, rubbing his forehead before trailing after Krem, glancing back towards the infirmary.

 

\---

  
  
“Bull, darling, I didn’t tell you to go far,” Vivienne said, snapping Bull out of his daze. He jumped to his feet, panic flaring to life. Krem stood with him, his hand automatically going out to rest on Bull’s shoulder. There was a lot of blood on her once-white robes, but she gestured gently for him to remain calm, “He is recovering. It may be a rough couple of days, but Dorian is a survivor and I expect him to pull through just fine.”

  
A long breath of relief escaped Bull, his eye smarting, “Ma’am, thank you, I —” He reached out to catch her hand in both of his, at a loss over what to say to express himself. No words felt like enough.

  
“Go see him, Bull,” Vivienne ordered softly, patting his cheek. He nodded, reaffirming his thanks again before hurrying through the castle. It’d been a long few hours, Krem trying to distract him, clarifying all that had happened while Bull was getting Dorian help and tracking down Viv. Dalish had stunned the man with the blow that knocked down part of the tower, and the Chargers had stormed the space to retrieve him. By that time, Cullen had his men out searching every inch of the fortress for any other intruders. It look like there was just the one, and it was hard not to go rushing into the dungeons and beat the man to a pulp. Leliana was handling the interrogation, and if anyone could get something out of the man, he trusted her to do it.

  
Outside of the infirmary, he slowed to a reasonable pace. He didn’t need to barge in there and set everyone off again, didn’t need to get Dorian riled up. Still, Bull was full of nervous energy, a mixture of exited and scared to see Dorian. Arriving inside, they guided him to the back where Dorian was tucked into a bed, bandages wrapped securely around his chest. Most of the makeup was gone, something still speared just above his beauty mark. He looked to be asleep, but when Bull took a step closer, his eyes opened into slits.

  
“Bull,” he voice came out thick, and Bull suspected he had a lot of elfroot in his system.

  
“Hey, Dorian,” Bull said warmly, something sticking in his throat. He drew closer, careful in the small space, to put his hand in Dorian’s hair, “You had me worried.”  
Dorian hummed sleepily, “Pretty worried myself.”

  
Bull chuckled softly, his eye wet. Dorian blinked up at him as a tear met his cheek, surprised and confused.

  
“M’alright,” Dorian reassured, reaching out so his hand met Bull’s stomach. His fingers were warm, and it was a reassurance to feel his touch, “Corset didn’t make it.”

  
That startled another laugh out of Bull, one that had someone giving him stern look. He grumbled an apology, but the relief that Dorian was alright was too much to easily keep his emotions in check.

  
“We’ll get you another one,” Bull murmured, wiping the last bit of gold kohl off his face before ducking down to kiss his forehead. Dorian’s eyes fell closed with a content sound, “Sleep, Kadan. You need it.”

  
Bull stayed there, running his fingers through Dorian’s hair until he was sure the mage was asleep. The healers had a chair for him by that point, dragging it over and placing it out of the way but near Dorian.

 

\---

  
  
It took another day before Dorian was awake for more than a few minutes. He looked tired and worn out, but was able to complain, and that was enough assurance for Bull to know he was on the mend. Bull rarely left his side, catching a few minutes of sleep as he lounged awkwardly in the chair, leaving only to train briefly with his men when Vivienne insisted he go get some air for the morning when they changed his dressing and cast a few more healing spells.

  
“So, who did I piss of?” Dorian asked through a mouthful of oatmeal.

  
Bull eyed him wearily and gave a small shrug.

  
“I have my guesses,” Dorian arched an eyebrow, pointing at Bull with his spoon. Bull’s frown grew, and that was telling enough, “Ah, so dear ol’ dad, right?”

  
“Dorian,” Bull said softly, surprised. Dorian shrugged dismissively, but his eyes were bright with hurt.

  
“Maevaris said she thought they knew, about us.”

  
“And you didn’t think to say anything?” Bull demanded, voice more of a growl than he had hoped.

  
“Leliana knew. I hoped that was enough,” Dorian shrugged again, chewing his oatmeal thoughtfully, “Hope not to get you dragged in the middle of this.”

  
Bull huffed, “Woulda rather have known than watch you almost get taken out in the middle of Skyhold.”

  
Dorian looked guilty, “For that, I am sorry.”

  
“I forgive you, Kadan,” Bull sighed, leaning across the bed to kiss Dorian’s temple. It was somewhat flattering, and entirely frustrating, that Dorian felt the need to look out for him.There was a long pause as Dorian continued to eat, having found himself famished when he was awake enough to notice.

  
“Was there a message?” Dorian asked, his dark curiosity getting the best of him.  
“Just that you aren’t a son of Halward Pavus any longer,” Bull answered. It was truth enough. He didn’t need to tell him that it had said ‘a dead son is better than a shamed one’, knowing that would only gnaw at Dorian down the line.

  
“Ah, that’s a relief. Maybe he’ll really leave me alone this time,” Dorian gave a devilish smile, slightly obscured by this drooping mustache, “So, what do you think, Dorian Taureus? I think I rather like it better than Dorian Bovillus, but I suppose I should ask your opinion.”

  
“Whatever makes you happy, Dorian,” Bull said fondly, heart full and warm.

**Author's Note:**

> Shout out to whoevers' idea it was to give Dorian the word Bull as his new last name! Let me know and I'll post your name, if that's okay? It's a wonderful idea <3
> 
> Chat with me here: http://thekingofcarrotflower.tumblr.com


End file.
